Coping with Loss of Wife,Best Friend and Soul Mate

Hi, 

I have been with my beautiful wife for 30 years, and we have 3 beautiful teenage daughters.

My wife has been fighting breast cancer since 2009, with numerous Chemotherapies, natural rememdies, surgery and radiotheraphy - after 4/5 years she was in reammission, and then 9 months later in 2015 it came back harder and faster - she has daily lung drains, and was put on various chemotheraphy drugs and in April 2017 she was deemed stage 4 as it had spread to her spine, liver, kidney, both breasts, neck etc - We thought the worse.

I took 9 months off from work to care for my wife, and in that time I studied Chemotherapy treatments, wrote to Pharmecetical firms, and went through weekly blood results in order to do anything I could to save my beloved wifes life.

With my research I was also able to push the Oncologists and talk to them on a 1-2-1 level (even my wife said it was like 2 Oncologists where in the room !) - and I was the one who discovered why my wife had rejected the Chemotherapy in the first place due to her Albumin levels where very low.

Armed with Blood results every week, checking white cells, B12, Albumin I was able to tailor my wifes diet and she was able to have the chemotheraphy week on week.

Working together we managed to keep her alive for another 9 months, however sadly it caught up with her and she died in December 2017 just after Christmas.

Althought this is still very raw, I miss her every day, and have 3-4 breakdowns a day, constant crying, longing, and yearning for my wife - I wear her perfume and jewellery and still sleep with her dressing gown and have kept the house exactly as she left it so ther are no changes "when she returns home"

In 30 years we were together, we were only away from each other for 2 weeks, and we were more than Husband and Wife, she was my soul mate, best friend, we were a unit, we held hands, told each other we loved each other everyday, and I wanted no one else - she was my everything and the only thing in my life I was ever afraid of losing.

I still cry in pain that this could happen to someone so beautiful, and I have had the phases of grief doubt, and anger.

I hate the cliches, "be strong for the children" but how can I when I am not strong for myself, and the girls are teenagers, they are in their rooms talking to their friends, or boyfriends, and I am left on my own - the girls will grow up and I will walk the rest of my time on this earth without my beloved.

I particularly like the "it will get better after the funeral" this I can tell you is ********* ! it has got worse - I have more crying breakdowns, even when I go to places that me and my wife visited I hyper ventilate and freeze on the spot.

Yes I have couselling, but everyday the pain intesifies as does the emptiness and hollowness inside.

I am told I did all I could for my beautiful wife, and I would give everything I own just to have her back with me again.

I wanted to share my story, with others and I read a statistic once that said "75 men a day under the age of 50 are made widowers" and now I am in that statistic.

I am finding it hard to cope everyday, and it feels like my head is caving in with all the tears and emotions - I assume I am not alone

Simon 

  • Hi Alex,

    They are national and have groups all over the UK - www.widowedandyoung.org.uk/

    I found it brilliant, and have made some really good friends all in the same situation as us, its £25 a year, but well worth it, there are various groups as well - not sure where you are in the UK, but once you join your local rep gets in touch with various activies etc.

     

  • Thank you for that i will have alook. Im in Yorkshire, not sure if any groups up here.

    Thanks

    Debbie 

  • Hi Debbie 

    yes they are UK wide - basically if you go on the main web Page they tell you all about it and when you join your local Yorkshire rep will contact you and then you can join the WAY Facebook pages it's invaluable because its membership of a club no one wants to be in but the support is amazing - it's hard to explain but you become a member of WAY and then any member can organise a get together coffee/tea etc and then groups form - I have made some great friends here and we have a drinks nighr via Zoom and I am sure that each area has that too - no one judges you as we are all in the same boat x

  • That sounds great, i think its what we need in this situation talking to people who are actually going through the same dreadful thing, its horrific isnt it. I try and keep busy through the day its evenings when im so lonely and covid restrictions aren't helping not being able to see family and friends. I work 3 days aweek which has been a god send tbh. 

    Take care

    Debbie  

  • Hi Simon 

    I have never done anything like this in my life but I to have just lost my wife, best friend, solemate we were in infant school together and jouners we got together as a couple at 16 and 17 got married at 21/22 we have 3 fantastic children who are now 25,28 znd 33 and all have degrees we have been blessed with one fantastic granddaughter. I lost my wife 4 weeks ago to lung cancer it was horrible she was diagnosed 2 years ago and we panicked because of covid we thought she would not be able to get treatment but I have to say the hospital were fantastic and I cannot believe how strong she was she was fantastic the relationship we had sounds to me like very similar to yours so I think we have both been very lucky, do I cry yes does it hurt yes every single day I to have already thought about joining her but does that sort my problem may be, but then I think were does that leave the kids and granddaughter would my beautiful wife really want me to do that no so at the moment I am thinking like this i am writer the relationship with my beautiful wife was a love story it really was a best seller and at  the moment I am just going to write a few short stories about me on my own and see how it goes because I think people will want sequel to my best seller and when reach her and I will because I know were shes gone were going to start the sequel of our beautiful love story. 

    This might sound a bit crazy but I honestly believe it.

    If a particular song comes on or a thought comes in my I can cry smile and sometimes shout things when am on my own but then I think about the sequel to that love story.

    Simon I hope your ok and well and hope you understand and think you can continue your love story later on

    KennyBuck

  • Hello I'm so sorry for your loss I know it can be difficult and you find yourself alone but you are not,I also lost my mum and sister to cancer and my dad also passed all within 5 years of each other then I found out I had cancer,the pain of losing them does get easier but remember the good memories that you had with her I do understand you have to try to keep strong itt try s not an easy task but you will get through the upset and the hurt.Take care of yourself x